Chapter 60
Chapter 60
After dealing with Yoon Sungjun’s matter, I immediately contacted Lieutenant Colonel Kang.
The place he arranged for the meeting was neither the Capital Defense Command nor a military shelter.
Instead, it was a closed water purification facility near Yongsan, where the Capital Defense Command was located.
It made me uneasy.
“Could it be a trap?”
—Don’t worry, Boss. Who do you think I am? Nothing in this world can escape the eyes of this great Picker!
“Right. Let’s go.”
If I wanted to take control of Mapo Boulevard, external activities were inevitable.
—No one present, Boss.
The meeting location was an ordinary abandoned building.
“Good. Porter, stay here in camouflage mode.”
—I will… wait heavily.
Once [Camouflage Mode] activated, the crawler tracks and steel armor instantly transformed into a moss-covered mass of concrete.
If anything went wrong, he would secure my escape route.
A solid insurance policy.
Creeeak.
I opened the rusted iron door and stepped inside.
On the outside, I appeared to be wearing a leather jacket under a loose trench coat.
But beneath it, the workshop’s newest technology gleamed—the [Improved Reinforced Exoskeleton].
It now had the form of a full-body suit composed of thin but extremely strong alloy plates.
Small batteries were embedded at the joints to assist output like a hybrid vehicle.
Hidden in the wrists and shoulders were small weapons similar to the toxin needle launchers mounted on Poison Bees.
If things go wrong, I’ll just [Disassemble] the wall and leave.
I waited while maintaining tension.
Eventually—
[Two humans approaching. Lieutenant Colonel Kang Cheolmin and one unidentified female soldier.]
Only two?
Just as Picker reported, the two entered the building.
Lieutenant Colonel Kang Cheolmin.
Behind him stood a female soldier with a rigid posture.
[Boss! Scan complete!]
Picker displayed information on the HUD.
First, the female soldier.
Rank insignia: Staff Sergeant.
A thick mana circuit extended from her heart through her muscles.
[Estimated C-Rank physical enhancement user.]
A bodyguard.
The real issue was Kang Cheolmin.
[Boss! Lieutenant Colonel Kang Cheolmin also possesses dual cores.]
“…What?”
The display confirmed it.
One in the heart.
One in the brain.
Two cores resonating together to supply mana throughout his body.
It was the exact same structure as Yoon Sungjun, whom I had artificially awakened.
Because of that, his rank could not be calculated accurately.
But if he’s a lieutenant colonel, he must be a high-tier Awakened…
Was having two cores the proof of being high-tier?
Then what about me?
“Late. Sit.”
Kang Cheolmin gestured.
The female soldier moved and brought over an old metal table and two chairs from the corner.
He sat first.
I followed.
An ordinary chair should have collapsed under the exoskeleton’s weight, but this one held.
Perhaps he noticed my surprise.
A faint smile appeared on his lips.
“This is a place we frequently use for meetings with the enhanced humans of Machine Society, so there’s no need to worry.”
“….”
“Let me introduce her. This is Staff Sergeant Seo. My personal aide. I brought her as escort.”
“Colonel.”
I asked with a distorted mechanical laugh.
“You’re not here representing the military?”
His eyebrow twitched.
I had hit the mark.
“No troops. No staff. Just one escort in a place like this. That means this isn’t an official military proposal.”
What I wanted was military technology.
If this wasn’t official, it would be a problem.
Silence hung in the air.
Kang Cheolmin soon nodded with a bitter smile.
He’s not just a madman. He can read the board.
He had to admit Bomb Maker was far sharper than expected.
A sloppy lie would only make things worse.
“You’re perceptive. I’ll be honest. You’re right.”
He leaned back in his chair and sighed.
“The military today… isn’t the organization you imagine from before the collapse.”
What he described was bleak.
A massive unified chain of command?
That disappeared long ago.
“The military is now closer to a federation of warlords. I may hold the title of logistics staff officer for the Capital Defense Command, but my authority only extends to my direct units.”
He clicked his tongue.
Even inside the Capital Defense Command, political officers like Colonel Park Jinseop were forming factions and fighting over influence.
The strongest armed force in Korea was no different from the raiders of Mapo.
Just another internal power struggle.
“The only reason we haven’t completely collapsed is the north.”
“The north?”
“The northern front.”
Kang Cheolmin pointed north.
“After the Day of Ruin, the North Korean regime collapsed. China sealed itself behind a defensive line near Beijing. Do you know what that resulted in?”
He paused and looked straight at me.
“The Three Northeastern Provinces… the Manchurian plains filled with mutants. They’re pouring across the empty North Korean territory and crashing toward the DMZ like a tsunami.”
The image alone was horrifying.
Thousands.
Tens of thousands.
Perhaps even more monsters crossing the border.
“Most are C or D-Rank mutants. But sometimes unimaginable monsters appear among them. A-Rank leaders… or worse.”
His voice grew heavy.
“Whenever those appear, the front line nearly collapses. Each time, the Supreme Commander and his special unit step in to stop them. Have you heard of the White Tiger Unit?”
I shook my head.
It was the first time hearing any of this.
“Not surprising. Anyone who sees them usually dies—or is already dead.”
The Supreme Commander and the White Tiger Unit.
They were the military’s true power.
Its final bastion.
I suddenly grew curious.
“Then do Aberrants appear on the northern front?”
Kang Cheolmin shook his head.
“No. That’s the strange part.”
He rubbed his chin.
“The ones coming from the north are mostly biological mutants. Aberrants like the slime you hunted tend to appear inside South Korea—mainly in urban areas.”
Interesting.
Mutants from the north.
Aberrants from the cities.
That seemed important.
Perhaps one day it would unlock the mystery of this ruined world.
“That’s enough background.”
Kang Cheolmin leaned forward.
Time for the real reason.
“I didn’t call you here for the military. I called you because my men and I need to survive between this damned political battlefield and the monsters.”
He tossed a thick envelope onto the table.
“I need your technology.”
The documents contained information about military equipment.
“C-Rank mutants can be killed with 5.56mm rounds if you aim at vital points.”
He continued with a bitter tone.
“Supply of ordinary rifles and ammunition isn’t a problem. The logistics network is still functional.”
Of course.
The military wouldn’t rely on Transmission abilities for such small items.
“But the problem is heavy weapons.”
He sighed.
“Regenerative firearms, high-explosive shells, grenade launchers—all monopolized by Machine Society. Recently the defect rate has reached nearly thirty percent.”
Thirty percent.
Three out of ten weapons malfunctioning or exploding.
That was practically telling soldiers to die.
“What’s the reason? Surely it’s not lack of technology.”
I had heard that Machine Society’s equipment was manufactured by Guro Foundry.
With that level of technology, repairing weapons should be easy.
“Resource shortages.”
He explained.
“The scrap fields around Guro and Yeongdeungpo are exhausted. Quality metal and materials are scarce, so they’ve begun mixing inferior components.”
The moment he said that, everything clicked.
So that’s why.
Now I understood why Machine Society, despite already controlling huge territory, had been eyeing Mapo Boulevard.
Pig didn’t understand its value.
But for a resource-starved faction, this place was a gold mine.
They were targeting the honey pot I’ve been monopolizing.
Now the situation was clear.
Kang Cheolmin carefully continued.
“I want you to become the catfish.”
“The catfish?”
“Still water rots. Machine Society has monopoly power. Delivery schedules and quality have become arbitrary. They need a warning. If competition appears, they’ll tighten up.”
So that was his plan.
Use me as a new supplier to pressure Machine Society.
A political move to increase his bargaining power.
So he’s openly using me.
Unexpected.
But not bad.
In fact, exactly what I wanted.
I once lived in a shelter.
I knew the military didn’t only operate rifles.
They had helicopters, tanks, even fighter jets.
I didn’t know how they kept them operational.
But eventually I would need that level of technology.
And such blueprints wouldn’t be found scavenging ruins.
Only the military possessed them.
I stared at Kang Cheolmin through the lens.
He was nothing like the arrogant generals who occasionally visited shelters.
He openly revealed the military’s weaknesses.
[Boss. Heart rate and pupil reactions normal. No signs of lying.]
Picker’s lie detector passed him.
He might still be hiding things.
But at least what he said was genuine.
“Very well. I accept your proposal.”
“Thank you. Then let’s proceed. Can your organization supply gunpowder to the military?”
As expected.
Like Yoon Imsoo, he believed a large production organization stood behind me.
It was difficult to imagine one person producing that many bombs.
I didn’t correct the misunderstanding.
Maintaining the Bomb Maker persona, I nodded arrogantly.
“How much do you require?”
“As much as possible. Warheads, propellant, C4—we don’t care about the type. If quality is guaranteed, we’ll buy everything.”
A massive deal.
Most merchants would worry about payment.
But not me.
“If the northern front is active… there must be many cores.”
“….”
“I don’t need UP. Only cores. Payment must be in physical cores.”
Kang Cheolmin’s expression brightened.
The military also preferred paying with cores accumulated from battlefield spoils.
They already traded that way with Union Tech and other contractors.
“Agreed. We’ll follow the military supply standard pricing. Slightly lower than the market rate, but the volume will be guaranteed.”
“Reasonable.”
Outwardly calm.
Inside, I was ecstatic.
Military supply prices?
That only mattered to normal producers.
My production cost was almost zero.
I simply [Disassemble] trash from scrap hills and [Manufacture] new items.
Burn one F-Rank Core (1,200 UP) as energy.
Produce hundreds of grenades.
Sell them to the military.
Receive multiple cores in return.
It was practically a money-printing machine.
Once this deal began, my workshop could operate twenty-four hours without worrying about cores.
A pipeline of unlimited energy.
“The contract is established. However…”
His gaze sharpened.
“First, you must demonstrate your capability. This will be your first request—and your test.”